Believe it or not, nomophobia–the term for the fear of being without your smartphone–affects at least 40 percent of Americans, according to Psychology Today. It’s not just that sinking feeling you get when you realize that you’ve left your phone at home; it’s that compulsive need to check the weather, load up the latest news, and even check your email any time the feeling strikes. From sunup to sundown, people are undeniably addicted to their smartphones and all that those devices can do.

The beginning of a school semester usually brings back the same memories: seeing friends; grabbing course schedules; and of course, the crippling physical and financial weight of picking up textbooks. The thick tomes have become a modern thorn in the side of cash-strapped students who must purchase (and re-purchase) the books they’ll need for the semester. In fact, The College Board estimates that the average student coughs up $1,200 for books each school year, which is a 1,000 percent increase from 1977.

It might not immediately seem like an L&D topic: project management apps are for IT, right? But sharing projects with employees and prioritizing workflow definitely falls under the umbrella of workplace learning, so project management apps are definitely worth a second look. Even small companies can benefit from having every project (including training sessions) flow through one central location, making project management among some of the most important and useful learning strategies available. See how you can use some of our favorite apps to combine workplace education with project management for all of your employees.

First it’s the Facebook “dislike” button; could Twitter be the next social media giant to announce a big change? In a September 29th article, re/code reported that Twitter is developing a product that would allow users to bypass the usual 140 character limit (to mixed opinions). As if to prove their intentions, Twitter also removed the 140-character limit in direct messaging. While we don’t really know what this product would look or feel like, it would turn Twitter into less of a microblogging site and more of a publishing platform, which could be a total mistake. Here’s why we think Twitter should stay the same.

Think of eLearning as a meal: Each component on its own is great, but the gourmet effects are more likely to occur when different elements are mixed together to create a true culinary masterpiece. Take mobile learning –mLearning–for example: On its own, it’s pretty great, but when combined with instructor-led live training? That’s appetizing eLearning at its best. Perhaps mLearning is the perfect complement to go with a main course that revolves around live training.

File this under “Topics Most Likely to Have Been a 1980s Sci-Fi Movie Plotline”: A 26-square mile real-life Sim City is currently under construction deep in the New Mexico desert, designed to test new technologies on a grand scale. Before you pack your bags to become a sim character yourself, you should know that the city will be unpopulated and heavily wired for data collection, creating what will be the world’s biggest technology testing facility.

The very website responsible for every unproductive afternoon that you’ve ever had could become a template for productivity; if used in the right way, of course. The reason YouTube is as addictive as candy is the way videos are presented and displayed to the user. If your LMS had some of the same features and capacities as YouTube, you could theoretically make eLearning just as habit-forming. While most eLearning has to mold to fit the LMS use, it’s time to take control of the LMS to create one that adapts to learners (and not the other way around).

If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why? Do you consider yourself adept at handling social situations? These are the kinds of questions we’re used to seeing on personality tests, the intentions of which are to tell someone about ourselves in the most objective way possible.

But, for most learners, personality quizzes can fall a little short. Sometimes used as metrics for past learning or a description of learning style, personality tests usually have good intentions but are ultimately skewed by the learner themselves. Most learners want to put their best foot forward, so they might offer falsely positive answers, ultimately resulting in an inaccurate learner profile going forward.

Unless you’re a total noob, you know that video games are onto something when it comes to engaging players and getting them hooked. But consider this: According to ESRB, the average gamer is 34 years old. It’s a surprising number and one that might look suspiciously similar to that of the age of your average learner.

Now, contrast the sights, sounds, and motivation when playing a video game to a webinar: Traditionally one-note and easily forgotten, webinars are rarely as exciting as button-mashing during a fight game, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be just as engaging. By stealing a few interactive elements from video games, webinars can level up to something more than just a visual presentation.

With Halloween fast approaching we can’t help but reflect upon some of the stuff that really scares us– including bad training. Is there anything spookier than wasting time on material that learners will ultimately forget? Probably not. It’s in this sinister spirit that we offer up some of the truly horrifying mistakes that companies make during the training process (and a few quick tips to improve even the most hair-raising of errors).

At eLearning Mind, we believe in better ideas created around even better solutions. It’s part of our culture. Through the years, we’ve morphed from a small eLearning development team into a full-service creative eLearning agency . Today, we’re a 30+ team of intellectually creative individuals who are eager to solve your learning and development challenges. We’re ready to put our minds to work for you.

Newsletter

First NameLast NameEmailCompany

Offices

New York

203 Lafayette, Suite C306
New York, NY 10012
Phone: 212.590.0171

San Diego

1500 State St.
Suite 220
San Diego, CA 92101

Detroit

26333 Jefferson Avenue, Suite 102
St. Clair Shores, MI 48081

Project Planner

First NameLast NameEmailCompanyPhoneHow can we help?
Newsletter Subscribe: